Twine-balling machine



No. 6I9,383. -Pa-tented Feb. I4, |899. F. G. BECKER.

TWINE BALLING MACHINE.

(Application led Oct. 1B, 1897.)

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Patented Feb. I4, |899. F. G. BECKER.

TwlNE BALLING mAcHlNE.

(Appxieation med one. 1s, 189i) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

FREDERICK G. BECKER, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

TWINE-BALLING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 619,383, dated February14, 1899.

Application filed OCtOber 18, 1897. Serial No. 655,512. (No model.)

T0 all whom, t may concern:

Beit known that I, FREDERICK G. BECKER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Peoria, in the county of Peoria and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Twine-Balling Machines;and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, which will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to machines for forming nished twine into balls,being wound from the spools which are filled from the twine-makingmachine.

Heretofore balling-machines have been so constructed as to necessitatethe employing of an operator for each machine, because the device notbeing automatic in its action required continuous attention.Furthermore, the machines were faulty in construction, and should theoperator be a little careless or lacking in judgment the breakinglof thetwine was the result or loose winding of the ball. When the twine wasbroken, the stopping of the machine was necessary in order to unite thetwine. This of course caused much trouble and occupied a great deal oftime.

It is the object of my invention, in view of the above, to provide amachine for winding balls which shall be perfectly automatic, so thatlittle or no attention will be required other than to start a new balleach time one is finished.

Furthermore, the object is to provide a machine in which a new tensiondevice is embodied for keeping a continuous even strain upon the twineas it unwinds from its spool. An operator may have charge of severalmachines of this construction instead of giving his whole time andattention to one machine, as has been mentioned above.

As a further object I provide a gage which is operated by the windingball, so that after starting the winding the machine is perfectlyautomatic. I am not aware that a gage has ever been used in this manneron machines of this class, nor indeed am I aware that a gage has beenused in any manner whatsoever to acquire my object.

In the drawings forming a part of this application, Figure 1 is a frontelevation of the machine. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 2is a front view of a gear-box carrying a spindle, showing thearrangement of gearings. Fig. 3 is a plan viewof a tension attachment,which forms an important part of my invention. Fig. 3a is a perspectiveView in detail of a portion of the tension device. Fig. 4. is a sideelevation of my tension device shown in Fig. 3, with a spool of twineshown in connection therewith. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of a port-ionof the machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of thesame. Fig. 7 is a plan view of a frame and rock-shaft, forming part ofFigs. 5 i

and 6. Fig. 8 is a side view of the cam with ratchet-toothed interior.Fig. 9 is an edge View of the same. Fig. 10 is a face view of aratchet-plate with pawls pivoted thereon. Fig. 11 is an edge view of thesame, showing a slotted cam-ring and retaining-collar therewith. Fig. 12is an edge view of the slotted cam-ring. Fig. 13 is a face View of thesame. Fig. 14 is an edge View of the retaining-collar. Fig. 15 is anedge view of a controlling-pawl, which is shown .in Fig. 10. Fig. 16 isa face view of the saine.

A represents the frame of the machine, across the lower reaches of whichis j ournaled a shaft B, having a tight and loose pulley a and b,respectively. A belt-shift c, with its lever c, is provided, as usual,the said lever being placed in a convenient position for the operator.Upon the top of the frame is journaled a flier, mounted on awinding-shaft e', consisting of an arm f, having a horizontal finger gupon each extremity, The outer extremities of said fingers are slottedand are each provided with a roller h, and at the middle of the lengthof each finger is the roller i. The shaft e is made hollow, and at theend carrying the said arm fare journaled a pair of rollers j. A pulleye2 on the shaft e drives the iier by means of a belt e3 from pulley e4on shaft B.

A vertical revolving shaft la is journaled on the side of the frame Aand carries on its upper extremity a spool of twine. A roller Z isvmounted on an arm m, pivoted to the frame A in the rear of the machine,the lower periphery of which is in line with the center of the hollowshaft e. A rigid arm n is secured to the frame and carries a roller o atIOO its upper extremity. The twine is wound from the spool, passesaround said roller o, thence passes backward from the roller l, and fromthe under side of the said roller through the shaft e', over one of therollers j, thence up and over the rollers 1I and h, and down to thewinding-spindle, to be hereinafter described.

The tension device used in my improved machine is constructed asfollows: A bracket p, secured to the frame A, pivotally supports an armq, one end of which supports one end of a bracket t. Within the bracketslides a rod u, and a spring c occupies a position between the head u'of the rod u and the head of the said bracket, as shown in Fig. 3. Alever w is pivotally supported on a bracket u2 on the machine-frame, theforward end of which is within easy reach of the operator at the frontof the machine. The opposite end of said lever, beyond its fulcrum, isprovided with a foot w', which bears against the twine on the spool. Aprojecting arm w2 on the lever w pivotally supports the free outer endof the said rod u. Upon the vertical shaft 7o beneath the spool is adrum s, which is encircled for part of its circumference by a band-braker, generally made of spring-steel, the two ends of which are looselysecured to the free ends of the lever q described. In operation thelever w is thrown in a direction to increase the distance between theshaft Zo and the foot w', whereby the spool of twine may be set upon theshaft, to which it is secured by any good means. Upon releasing thelever the foot 'w' bearsagainst the twine on the spool, as above setforth.

' It will be seen that the greater the distance between the shaft 7c andthe foot fw' the greater will be the strain upon the spring o as Well asthe swing of the lever q upon its fulcrum, which tends to increase thefriction of the band-brake upon the drum s. In Winding from the fullspool the twine has a greater leverage than when winding from a spoolnearly empty. Therefore the greater tension must be applied at thestart. plished as is easily seen from the drawings. As the twine reducesthe diameter of the winding-spool the foot w' falls and graduallydiminishes the friction of the band-brake upon the drum s, so that thetension is perfectly even at all times. In former practice theband-brake was employed as well as a lever; but to the lever was pivotedone end of a 'thread-bar carrying a hand-wheel, with a suitable stop onthe frame, against which the hand-wheel was allowed to bear, whereby inthe turning of the wheel the thread-bar was drawn forward, together withthe lever, and

the friction of the band-brake upon the drum increased. The operator instarting the machine with a full spool would give the handwheel asufficient number of turns to give the necessary tension; but as thediameter of the twine on the spool decreased and the operator ineglecting to loosen the wheel the leverage i This is accoml of the pullof the twine wasl diminished, the strain upon the twine was too great,and the result was the breaking of the twine.

Upon the top of the frame A are secured two arms C, which project beyondthe front of the machine and pivotally support a gearbox D by arms E,bolted thereto. Upon the shaft B is a cone friction-wheel F, whosegreatest diameter faces the front of the machine, and upon it rests afriction-wheel G, carried on an angling-shaft H, having bearings at oneend in the pivotally-hung arm I of the gear-box, the shaft with itslower end simply resting by its wheel G upon the cone F, being held inplace on the cone by a lever J, within which the said shaft H is held,as in common practice with machines of this class, one end of the leverbeing pivoted to a standard K, the other end carrying an adjustableWeight L. The upper end of the shaft H carries within the gear-box D abeveled gearwheel L', which drives a shaft M by means of a gear-wheel N,and upon the same shaft M is fixed a worm O, which drives a verticalshaft P by means of the worm-wheel R. The upward continuation of saidshaft outside of the gear-box constitutes the balling-spindle Q. Saidshaft P also carries aworm S, which drives a horizontal shaft T by aworm-wheel U. This shaft projects outside of the box and carries the camT'. This construction is shown only in Fig. 2, being omitted in theother figures because of possible complication of the drawings.

A portion of -the main frame V, which is secured to the cross-piece A',carries at each end thereof a projection A'f" and A3, Fig. 7.

I A rock-shaft W has its bearings in these proj ections, one end of saidshaft having an arm W' secured thereto with a wrist-pin W2, -which isadjustable in a slot X and carries a roller W3 on its outer end. Theopposite end of said shaft W carries a lever-arm W4, which supports byan eye L05 a foot-lever by a rod w.

Upon the projecting portion A1 of the frame V is fixed a wrist-pin W7,which carries a dog Y, Figs. l, 2, 5, and 6, which engages the lip .c ofthe lever-arm W4.

Upon the gear-box D is secured a bearingbracket D', carrying a gage D2,consisting of an arm, as shown, having on its free end a roller D8. Thesaid arm carries a short arm D4, having a pin D5, which supports andengages a link D6. This link is pivotally attached to the dog Y bysuitable means. The gage D2 occupies a position just in front of thespindle Q, as shown, the use of which will be presently described. Asbefore mentioned, the shaft T, within the gear-box, carries the cam T',and, as will be seen from Figs. 8 and 9, a hub T2 is formed therewith,which turns freely on said shaft T. The interior of the cam is boredout, but leaves a wall T3, and a number of ratchet-teeth T4 are cut onthe inner periphery of the cavity thus formed. A slotted plate T5,carrying the pawls T6 and T7, covers the said cavity hav- ICO IIO

ing the pawls within. A raised housing T8 incloses springs T9 and T10,which serve to keep the pawls thrown outwardly into engagement with theratchet-teeth T4. The pawl T6 is provided with a pin 1, which projectsthrough a slot 2 in said plate T5. Upon the opposite side of the plateis a hub 3, which is secured to the shaft and carries a cam-ring 4,having a slot 5, and a collar 6 serves to hold the ring 4 in place. Thepin lis of sucient length to pass through the plate T5 and slot in ring4, so that said ring is capable of moving the pawl T6 when swung in theproper direction. The plate T5 is fast on the shaft by its hub; but thecam is free to revolve independently thereon. The pawl T7 permits thecam to move in one direction only. However, when the pawl T6 occupiesthe position shown in Fig. l0 the camis held against turning in eitherdirection. By the simple turning of the ring. 4 the pawl T6 is drawn outof engagement with the teeth T4 by reason of the slot 5 and pin l, thuspermitting the cam to revolve freely in one direction.

Having now fully described the construction of the machine, theoperation may now be understood. The shaft B in :revolving transmitsmotion to the friction-wheel Gand shaft H and spindle Q through thegearing in the box D,the said spindle receiving the twine from iier, asshown. The start is made by disengaging the pawl T6 and bringing the caminto position, so that point 7 of the cam rests upon roller VS ofrock-shaft W.- The pawl T6 is now to be locked and the machine set inmotion. The spindle Q makes a few revolutions, which allows the twine tobe started thereon, and the cam then drops to the position shown bysolid lines, Fig. 2. The spindle continues its revolutions, and by thetime the point of contact of the cam with the roller NVB is at the point1l the ball is of sufficient size to raise the gage-arm D2 and by itbring the arm D4 to its upward limit within the slot in the link D6. Italso continues farther than the length of the slot and raises the linkin the same line of direction, thus lifting the dog Y from the lip Z ofthe leverarm VL. The ball is now of sufficient size to receive itscover. The said arm W4 rises on being released by the dog by reason ofthe weight of the cam and gear-box arrangement upon the roller W3 of thearm IV to position shown by broken lines, Fig. 6, and brings gear-boxinto position,as shown by solid lines, Figs. 2 and 6. The spindle Q nowcontinues to revolve till the ball has its final layer or cover, afterwhich it is removed and the operation repeated.

It will be noted that the spindle Q will revolve slowly at first or atleast at a speed just suficient to permit the twine to Wrap in evenclosely-laid layers; but as the ball grows larger the spindle mustnecessarily have an increased speed, else the windings would overlap.This is accomplishedby the use of the coned friction-pulley F. The camserves to draw the friction-Wheel G farther up the cone F upon aconstantly-increasing diameter, which obviously increases the speed ofthe said wheel G. Thus the cam not only constantly changes the speed forthe growing diameter of the ball,but also gives to the ball the properform by keeping its upper and lower edges always at a point on a linewhich might be drawn from the pivotal points of the arms E of thegearing-box, with the arms C of the frame, to the periphery of theroller h on the arm g of the iiier, said pivotal points being at thecenter ofthe ball.

The flier is provided with the two arms g, so that the device iscounterbalanced, one arm only being used in practice; but both areprovided with the same means, so that in case of the giving out of onethe other may be used. Naturally when the gear-box and its parts returnto theirprst or starting position the shaft H returns to its formerposition, the pulley G attaining position upon the smaller diameter ofthe cone-pulley.

Those acquainted with -twine-balling machinery and its heretofore faultyconstruction will appreciate my improvements, as have been fullydescribed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a twine-balling machine, the main A frame, a spool-carryingspindle having bearings on` the said frame, a brake-drum on the spindle,a lever q pivoted on the frame, a brake-band attached to the leversubstantially as shown, a lever w pivoted to the main frame and adaptedto bear onthe spools, a tension device connecting the levers q and w,consisting of the link t, rod m and spring o surrounding said rod andarranged substantially as herein set forth and described.

2. In a twine-balling machine, the combination with the main frame andspindle-driving mechanism, a gear-box pivoted to the said frame, arock-shaft supported on the frame, two arms on the said shaft, afoot-lever pivoted to one of the arms, a roller on the opposite arm, acam-shaft T in the said gear-box, an adjustable cam on said shaft T forengaging the rock-shaft roller, a lock within the `cam for engaging anddisengaging the cam and its shaft, a ball-gaging arm having pivotalbearing on the gear-box, a dog pivoted to gear-box and adapted to engageone of the arms of the rock-shaft, an arm D4 pivotally connecting thegage-arm and dog, all substantially as set forth and described.

3. In a twine-balling machine, the main frame, a gear-box with itsdriving mechanism, a rock-shaft on the main frame, a foot-lever IOO IIO

attached thereto, a roller on said rock-shaft,

ing-spindle in the gear-box, substantially as described for the purposesset forth.

4. In a twine-balling machine, the main frame, a gear-box pivotedthereto, driving mechanism in the gear-box, a Winding-spindle driven bysaid mechanism, a rock-shaft on the main frame, an arm @v4 on the shaft,a foot-lever attached to the arm, an arm w on the said shaft, a rolleron the arm, an adjustable cam on the gear-box engaging said roller, theframe V as part of the main frame, an arm A3 thereon, a pin W7 on thearm, a dog y on said pin for engaging said arm W4, an adjustable linkI)6 pivoted at one end to the said dog, a gage D2 pivoted on thegear-box, an arm D4 operating with said gage and engaging said link D,in combination with a flier for Winding twine on said Windingspindle,driving mechanism for same, a spool-carrying spindle on the frame andmeans for governing its movements substantially as set forth.

5. For a twine-making machine, an adjustable cam consisting of thehollow body of irregular contour, a series of teeth on the inner annularsurface of the hollow portion, a shaft y for carrying the cam, acovering-plate for the `hollow portion, an independent spring-actuyatedpawl pivoted to the said plate, an adjustable pawl pivoted to the plate,a cam-ring mounted on the plate, a pin on the adjustable .paWl and aslot in the cam-ring for engagd `ing the pin substantially as set forthand de scribed.

6. In a tWine-balling machine, an adjustable cam therefor, consisting ofthe hollow body thereof, a shaft, a series of ratchet-teeth on the innerannular surface of the said hollloW body, a covering-plate on the shaftadjacent to the cam, a springactuated pawl lsubstantially as and for thepurposes herein set forth and described.

In testimony whereof I ax my signature in presence oftwo Witnesses.

A FREDERICK G. BECKER. Witnesses:

J. P. MCMAHAN, J. HARDACRE.

